The Connection Between Discipleship and Leadership
Dare Greg
DSMN 500: Discipleship Ministries
October, 2022
Contents
Introduction........................................................................................................................1
The Great Commission: Disciples and Leaders.................................................................1
The Leadership Chapters in Early & Dempsey vs Those in Putman.................................3
How and Why the Ultimate Goal for Discipleship is a Healthy Church...........................4
Applying the 10 Kingdom Leadership Principles..............................................................5
Conclusion.........................................................................................................................5
Bibliography.......................................................................................................................6
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1
Introduction
This paper aims to examine Great Commission leadership. It will compare developing
leaders and developing disciples, and also put, side by side, the leadership lessons in the Early
and Dempsey readings and the Putman readings, noting their similarities and differences, and
strengths and weaknesses. The paper will state how the goal for discipleship is a healthy church
as found in Scripture, and the paper will end with an appraisal of the 10 Kingdom Leadership
Principles’ application in my local church, pointing out areas that need to be improved upon.
The Great Commission: Disciples and Leaders
The single most important commandment Christ gave His disciples while on earth is
called the Great Commission. He charged His disciples in this commandment to launch out and
make disciples of others who will also become disciple makers. This is as He had promised when
He met His first four disciples Peter, Andrew, James, and John that “follow me and I will make
you fishers of men.” (Matthew 4:19, King James Version)1. Thus, before His departure from
earth, Jesus fulfilled His promise, having empowered His disciples and taught them all they
needed to know to become fishers of men, and sent them on fishing expeditions which is to
continue till the end of the world. “Go you therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the
name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things
whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the
world. Amen.” (Matthew 28: 19-20).
The charge “teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you” tells
us Jesus wants His disciples to teach their converts the Great Commission too, so that the work
of the gospel might continue and grow stronger. Also, the commission is not limited by space,
1 All scripture references herein are in King James Version, unless otherwise stated.
2
nationality or race. Jesus did not restrict His followers to Jews alone, but to all nations, as
confirmed again in Acts 1:8 where He said they shall be His witnesses “unto the uttermost part of
the earth”.
This is profound, as it tells us that those who perform the work of the gospel must: (1)
teach others to perform the work of the gospel too; new converts must not be left at the disciple
stage, they must be helped to grow into leaders who make disciples themselves, and (2) Gospel
leaders and disciple makers must not be discriminative in their execution of the Great
Commission, but strive to make disciples wherever they may be. The Great Commission is built
on the concept of multiplication, not addition. It requires the active participation of every
believer and leaves no room for passive discipleship2.
One other thing that must be stated is the fact that the focus of great discipleship is Christ.
It involves growing together and becoming more Christlike every waking day. As Christ has
taken our burdens on Himself, so are disciples expected to take others’ burdens, sharing the love
we find in our savior, selflessly serving others in our leadership roles as performers of the gospel
of love and joy. Jesus’ love for us is unconditional, and we must love unconditionally too. We
are, again, not just disciples, but leaders who must realize that we have a great impact on the
world just by existing, and much more when we take up the mantle and join Christ in the
business of creating leaders (not just disciples). As disciples, we are disciple makers too, and
must therefore be willing to make sacrifices to ensure that the body of Christ grows stronger and
stronger. We must be willing to do whatever we can to secure the good of others that they may
see the light of God and come to our Father who has given us the ability and the duty to bring
them to Him3.
2 Bonhoeffer, Dietrich, Kelly, B. Geffrey, Godsey, D. John. Discipleship. Fortress Press. 2001. 59.
3 Mathis, David. True Leadership is sacrifice, Not Privilege. Desiring God.
https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/true-leadership-is-sacrifice-not-privilege. 2016.
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Hence, discipleship and leadership are basically one and the same. The task of making
disciples is the task of making leaders. Being a good disciple requires us to be good leaders who
will make new disciples that become leaders too.
The Leadership Chapters in Early & Dempsey vs Those in Putman
While the biblical model for Christian leadership is one of transparency and holds that
leaders must be accountable, and not make a show of perfection by concealing their sins4, it also
requires that leaders be fit to teach, being whole and sound in the precepts of the Lord5. This is a
simple foundation upon which Christian leadership rests, yet we cannot deny the presence or
relevance of diversity, depending on individual beliefs and interpretations of the scriptures as the
Holy Spirit allows. We are all unique in our ways and thus there are differing views on what
constitutes great Christian leadership. This is why this section will place the teachings of Early
and Dempsey and those of Putnam on leadership roles side by side to exemplify the possibility of
unity in variance.
One core point on which both authors agree is that leadership should help others grow, its
task being, primarily, discipleship. Earley and Dempsey state that “our job as Christian leaders is
to help individuals grow, develop, and serve the King and His Kingdom. We... help them
discover and accomplish His will... and use the gifts God has entrusted to them”6. Likewise,
Putnam holds that leaders don’t have the task of informing people, but of “equipping them”7.
4 Putman, Jim, and Harrington, Bobby, Discipleshift: Five Steps That Help Your Church to Make Disciples
Who Make Disciples. Zondervan: Grand Rapids, Michigan. 2013. 104.
5 Scharf, R. Greg, Kok, Arthur. The New Elder’s Handbook, A Biblical Guide to Developing Faithful
Leaders. Baker Books: Grand Rapids, Michigan. 2018. 28-29.
6 Earley, Dave and Rod Dempsey. Disciple Making Is... B&H Publishing Group: Nashville, Tennessee.
2013. 203
7 Putman, Harrington, and Coleman. DiscipleShift. p.97
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That is, leaders have the task of empowering their disciples to grow into the fullness of their
capacities.
There is, however, a point of divergence in the opinions of these authors. While Putnam
sees leadership’s role as equipping others for leadership roles, Early and Dempsey see
leadership’s role as influencing others “to follow God’s plan for their lives”8. Earley and
Dempsey seem to think not everyone is called to be a leader, but that leaders should equip
everyone to use their spiritual gifts as required of them.
These differing opinions are by no way to be seen as opposites, for though they seem to
stand against each other at first glance, it must be noted that they both share a profound truth:
great leadership builds a healthy church.
How and Why the Ultimate Goal for Discipleship is a Healthy Church
Dempsey compares the church to the human body, taking the example of Apostle Paul in
Ephesians 1:23, whose parts work in unison to keep the whole healthy9. A healthy church,
according to Dempsey, constantly encourages the practice of good habits, the exercising of
spiritual gifts, the maturity of each member of the body of Christ, and the reproduction of new
cells in the body of Christ10.
Just like the human body does not add new cells, but multiplies those it already has, so
does a healthy church not just add new members, but multiplies its disciples. Once the cells start
multiplying slower than they die, both in the human body and in the body of Christ, decay sets
in, and overall death becomes inevitable. Thus, it is important for the body of Christ to keep
8 Earley, Dave and Rod Dempsey. Disciple Making Is... 201
9 Ibid., 211.
10 Ibid., 218.
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growing, to keep making disciples who will make disciples who will make disciples, that the
multiplication of cells might continue at a rate pleasing to the Lord.
Applying the 10 Kingdom Leadership Principles
Of the ten leadership principles, my local church can be said to be lacking in just one
respect, and that is the OUT attitude. My local church has been too relaxed in their conduct with
outsiders, mostly forgetting that our duty as Christians is not to keep a closed community but to
drive people into the Kingdom. The church is not multiplying as fast as it should, and this signals
danger for the ministry it belongs to. I’m glad our lead pastor has recognized this and is taking
steps to mitigate it. It is important to take the work of evangelism serious, as the Great
Commission is the only mission entrusted to us by our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Conclusion
As seen so far, leadership and discipleship are two immutable pillars upon which
Christianity rests; both similar and yet separate characteristics that Christians must have.
Christians must progress from being disciples to being leaders, since this is the charge given us
by Jesus. Yet it is also important to note that all do not have the same gifts, and therefore
leadership entails helping people identify their calling and their gifts, and how best to use them
forward the kingdom of God. In all, our greatest goal is to do all we can to bring in new members
into the body of Christ, in keeping with the Great Commission, thus helping to keep the body of
Christ healthy and whole.
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Bibliography
Bonhoeffer, Dietrich, Kelly, B. Geffrey, Godsey, D. John. Discipleship. Fortress Press. 2001.
Earley, Dave and Rod Dempsey. Disciple Making Is... B&H Publishing Group: Nashville,
Tennessee. 2013.
Mathis, David. “True Leadership Is Sacrifice, Not Privilege.” Desiring God. 2016.
https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/true-leadership-is-sacrifice-not-privilege
Putman, Jim, Bobby Harrington, and Robert E. Coleman. DiscipleShift: Five Steps That Help
Your Church to Make Disciples Who Make Disciples. Grand Rapids, Michigan:
Zondervan, 2013.
Scharf, Greg R., & Kok, Arthur, The New Elder’s Handbook, A Biblical Guide to Developing
Faithful Leaders, Baker Books: Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2018.
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